Thiago Silva has charges reduced, but remains jailed without bond

Thiago Silva appeared in front of a Broward County (Fla.) judge on Friday morning, where he had two charges against him reduced.

Silva, however, will remain jailed without bond after Judge John Hurley determined the UFC light heavyweight remains a “legitimate concern” to his wife and others around him based on what “looks like ongoing domestic violence in the relationship.”

Hurley also cited the potential for Silva to be a flight risk to his native Brazil as a reason to not apply bond to the four charges against him, despite initially planning to set the combined bond at $2,500,100.

Silva had two counts of felony attempted murder reduced to aggravated assault with a firearm after Hurley ruled there was no probable cause on the attempted murder charges.

Those counts stemmed from a Thursday night altercation at Pablo Popovitch Mixed Martial Arts Academy in Oakland Park, Fla., where Silva’s estranged wife trains. There, police allege, Silva threatened his wife, Thaysa, with a gun, and told her that if Popovitch didn’t come out of the school, he would go inside and begin shooting. After Popovitch emerged, then went inside to call police, Silva fled to his home, where a four-hour standoff with a S.W.A.T. team ensued before he surrendered nonviolently, police said.

According to arrest and police documents read aloud by Hurley during Friday’s court proceedings, Silva and his wife separated in 2012. But on Jan. 30 of this year, the judge read, Thaysa Silva called 911 to report a domestic altercation. She told police that in an argument with Silva, he picked up a silver revolver, pushed her down, said he was going to kill her, put the gun in her mouth and held her down. Thaysa Silva obtained a temporary injunction against Thiago at that time, Hurley said.

On Wednesday, Thaysa again called 911 to report a separate incident with Thiago, and she gave police access to text messages he allegedly sent her that made claims he would hire someone to kill her and move his girlfriend into their home.

Things came to a head on Thursday, when, at 7:44 p.m. ET, police records state, Silva pulled up to Popovitch’s gym and began honking his horn continuously until Thaysa came outside. Thiago Silva, believed to be intoxicated, according to the police report read by Hurley, then pointed a gun at her. The police report states there were approximately 25 people inside the gym at the time of the incident.

After Popovitch came out and approached the driver’s side of Silva’s vehicle, Silva allegedly threatened him, as well, before he went inside, locked the door and called police.

Once officers arrived at Silva’s home, he came outside following the standoff – where the report says he was tasered. Officers reported he was “extremely intoxicated” and that he uttered he “did not know what was going on.”

Silva’s attorney, Scott Saul, argued with the court that the first two charges against his client of attempted murder were “classic aggravated assault,” and not attempted murder.

“He never got out of his car. He never fired a gun,” Saul argued in front of Hurley. “You’ve got two real rock-solid aggravated assault charges. What I think this is, is you’ve got a professional fighter and an (assumption) thinking he can kill, an overreaction based on what the man does for a living.”

Ultimately, Judge Hurley did say in court that Silva’s profession and size – arrest records show him as 6-foot-2, 220 pounds – played a factor in him believing that if he was set free on bond, his physical stature alone was a concern.

“The court is concerned this looks like ongoing domestic violence in the relationship,” Hurley said. “You’re an MMA fighter, and your size gives great concern, with or without a weapon, you could easily kill your wife. If you’re released from custody, the court is concerned you would approach your wife again and concerned you would bring great harm to her or kill her.”

The judge also cited a constitutional law in Silva’s native Brazil that prevents its citizens from facing extradition to the United States as reason to deny him bond as a potential flight risk. The prosecuting attorney argued that Silva “has no ties to the community and his family is in Brazil. Once he gets to Brazil, it’s over. They will not send him back to the United States.”

Frank Smith, appearing on behalf of Silva as his business attorney, said the fighter has an IRS garnishment placed on him right now and that Silva has no available money until his next scheduled fight. Silva is booked to face Ovince St. Preux at UFC 171 on March 15, and Smith said that the fighter could stand to make in the neighborhood of $140,000 if he won that fight, plus the potential for other bonuses on top of it.

“If he doesn’t fight in Dallas, he’s broke. He needs to be in this country and be in Dallas to go forward,” Smith said.

So far, the UFC’s only official statement on Silva came late Thursday: “This evening, we were made aware of a situation involving Thiago Silva. We are in the process of gathering the facts and have no further comment at this time.”

But on Friday morning, UFC President Dana White told TMZ Sports that Silva would never fight for the promotion again.

No new court date has been set for Silva, who also faces a count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and a count of resisting arrest without violence. The court proceedings were streamed live by South Florida’s SunSentinel.

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